Audit of the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office Overview of Audited Entity

This section describes the makeup and responsibilities of the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office.

Overview

The Franklin County Sheriff’s Office (FCSO) was established as an independent state agency on September 1, 1998, after Section 12 of Chapter 34B of the Massachusetts General Laws abolished Franklin County as a form of government. The Sheriff became an employee of the Commonwealth but remained an elected official and retained administrative and operational control over FCSO.

According to its website, “The primary mission of the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office shall be the protection of the public.”

During the audit period, FCSO had 1,592 inmates in custody.¹ As of June 30, 2024, FCSO had 328 employees, including correctional officers, who supervised and cared for the inmates in FCSO’s custody. In fiscal years 2023 and 2024, FCSO’s annual state appropriations were approximately $19,596,630 and $19,910,176, respectively.

FCSO’s main administrative building and the Franklin County Jail and House of Correction (FCJHOC) are located at 160 Elm Street in Greenfield.

FCSO offers various inmate programs to prepare inmates for life after incarceration. These programs include, but are not limited to, medication-assisted treatment for opioid use disorder, behavioral health support, and educational and vocational training.

On February 1, 2025, which was during our audit work, Christopher Donelan retired as the Franklin County Sheriff. Governor Maura Healey appointed Lori Streeter as Interim Franklin County Sheriff. Sheriff Streeter took office on February 2, 2025.

Inmate Records

FCSO uses an information system to track and manage information on inmates in its custody. During the process of admitting an inmate, one of FCSO’s booking officers enters information from a mittimus² into the system.

Inmate Deaths

Section 932.17 of Title 103 of the Code of Massachusetts Regulations (CMR) requires county correctional facilities, such as FCSO, to establish guidelines for notifications, investigations, reports, and documentation regarding the deaths of inmates or facility employees. According to FCSO’s Death Protocol Directive, in the event of serious illness or injury of an inmate, the shift commander notifies the superintendent, assistant deputy superintendent of health services, and the assistant superintendent of security. In the event of an inmate’s death, the health services director is also notified. If an inmate is found unresponsive while in FCSO’s custody, FCSO employees immediately start life-saving measures, and the shift commander secures the area to ensure that only emergency response employees are allowed access until all investigations are completed, and the superintendent clears the scene. The superintendent then notifies the Sheriff, the State Police, and the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME).

In the event of an inmate’s death, FCSO’s superintendent notifies the inmate’s next of kin, and the Victim Services Unit and/or the Criminal Offender Record Information petitioner,³ if applicable. FCSO’s medical director requests and maintains copies of OCME’s report and the autopsy report.

FCSO conducts an investigation of any death that appears to be the result of homicide, suicide, substance overdose or misuse, injury related to occupation, or any other suspicious or unnatural causes. At the end of the investigation, a report is prepared and submitted to the Sheriff. Additionally, the superintendent of health services initiates a multidisciplinary mortality review, which is an internal meeting between FCSO’s superintendent, assistant deputy superintendent of health services, medical director, director of psychology, and medical practitioners and nurses, as deemed appropriate. This review is conducted within 30 days of an inmate’s death. The multidisciplinary review includes an administrative review, a clinical mortality review, and a psychological autopsy, if the death was a suicide.

Healthcare Services

During the audit period, most healthcare services were provided by FCSO’s in-house healthcare employees. During the audit period, FCSO’s health services director was designated as its responsible health authority, who is in charge of ensuring accessible, quality, and timely healthcare services for inmates and employees. FCSO contracted with external healthcare providers for mental health services.

Quarterly Meetings

According to 103 CMR 932.01(3),

The county correctional facility [in this case, FCSO] shall require that the health authority meet with the Sheriff/facility administrator or designee at least quarterly and submit the following:

1. quarterly reports on the health care delivery system and health environment; and
2. annual statistical summaries.

The FCSO Continuous Quality Improvement Committee meets on a quarterly basis with the superintendent, health services director, assistant superintendent of security, assistant superintendent of programs/behavioral health, the designated mental health clinician, the assistant health services director, and the medical director. These meetings provide the Medical and Behavioral Health Departments with the opportunity to present statistical information and announcements to security staff members and jail administrative staff members. The health services director keeps the meeting minutes as records of all Continuous Quality Improvement Committee meetings held. FCSO’s quarterly reports, as referenced in the above regulation, cover topics such as collaborative case planning sessions, monthly medical trips/healthcare visits, and admission trends.

Statistical summaries, also referenced in the above regulation, provide a comprehensive overview of medical services delivered to inmates throughout the year and report on the number of inmate bookings, initial evaluations, sick call requests, follow-up appointments, and mental health watch reviews.⁴

Admission Receiving Screenings

According to 103 CMR 932.06, an admission medical screening, referred to as a receiving screening by FCSO, should be performed by a qualified healthcare professional (QHP)⁵ on each inmate upon arrival at FCJHOC. When an inmate is newly admitted to FCJHOC, the booking officer conducts a basic suicide and medical screening. After the inmate has been booked, a medical staff member conducts a receiving screening, which includes, but is not limited to, a review of the inmate’s medical history (including illnesses, mental health conditions, allergies, and substance use), their appearance, any dental issues, and their mental state. The medical staff member records all findings of the receiving screening on the Intake Medical History and Screening form, the Intake Mental Health Screening and Assessment form, and the Dental Screening form. Additionally, the medical staff member makes recommendations for in-custody housing assignments and creates referrals to appropriate medical providers for follow-up appointments, if any issues are identified.

Upon each inmate’s admission to FCSO, the medical staff member who conducted the receiving screening informs the inmate on how to access healthcare services and provides the inmate with a sick slip form, a grievance form, and the medical orientation handbook.

Initial Health Assessments

According to 103 CMR 932.07, each inmate committed to FCJHOC for 30 or more days must receive a physical examination within either (1) 7 days of admission, if a licensed practical nurse completes the receiving screening, or (2) 14 days of admission, if a physician, physician assistant, or registered nurse completes the receiving screening.

FCSO Policy J-E-04 “Initial Health Assessment” requires that a QHP conduct an initial health assessment. This assessment includes a review of the receiving screening results, the collection of additional medical data to complete the medical history, follow-up on any issues identified during the screening, recording of vital signs (e.g., blood pressure and pulse), a physical examination, the conduction of laboratory and/or diagnostic tests, the review of the inmate’s immunization history, and the ordering of vaccines, when needed. The treating clinician records the results on the Physical Assessment form and reviews any results that require further assessment or treatment. They also create an initial identified medical issues list, along with corresponding diagnostic and therapeutic plans. Referrals for dental, mental health, or chronic diseases are documented in inmates’ medical records and ordered as appropriate.

Initial Mental Health Assessments

According to FCSO Policy J-E-05 “Mental Health Screening and Evaluation,” all inmates receive mental health screenings within 14 days of admission by qualified mental health professionals⁶ or mental health staff members. During the audit period, these services were provided by FCSO’s in-house mental healthcare employees. The screening includes, but is not limited to, an interview regarding the inmate’s history of psychiatric treatment, hospitalization related to substance use, detoxification and outpatient treatment, and suicidal and/or violent behavior, as well as a screening of the inmate’s intellectual function and emotional response to incarceration. The qualified mental health professionals document the results of the mental health screenings in inmates’ medical records, and inmates who screen positive for mental health disorders are referred for further assessment to qualified mental health professionals most appropriate to the inmates’ needs. Inmates who are determined to require acute mental health services beyond those available at FCSO are transferred to an appropriate facility.

Sick Call Requests

According to 103 CMR 932.09(1),

Written policy and procedure shall provide for continuous response to health care requests and that sick call[s], conducted by a physician or other qualified health personnel, is available to each inmate.

According to FCSO Policy J-E-07 “Nonemergency Health Care Requests and Services,” QHPs pick up sick slips filled out by inmates requesting healthcare at least once per shift, and the requests are triaged within 24 hours. Once sick slips are retrieved by the QHPs, they are evaluated for the emergency of the request, and the date and time the slip was picked up is noted on the slip. The responding QHP documents that sick call visits are made in the inmates’ medical records within FCSO’s electronic record management system by the responding QHP.

Employee Settlement Agreements

The Office of the Comptroller of the Commonwealth (CTR) has established policies and procedures for Commonwealth agencies processing settlements and judgments. CTR’s “Settlements and Judgments Policy,” dated January 10, 2022 and in effect during the audit period, states,

A settlement or judgment results from a formal claim (grievance, complaint or law suit) against the Commonwealth that results in either a Settlement Agreement, or a court or administrative award, order or Judgment. . . .

A “claim” is considered any demand by any person for damages to compensate a wrong allegedly suffered, including but not limited to violation of civil rights, breach of contract, failure to comply with contract bidding laws, incorrect or improper personnel determinations regarding pay, promotion or discipline, failure to comply with statutory or constitutional provisions applicable to employment, an eminent domain taking, and attorney’s fees, interest and litigation costs associated with these claims.

For the purposes of our audit, we focused on settlement agreements resulting from claims brought by current or former state employees against FCSO for the extended audit period, July 1, 2019 through June 30, 2024.

The procedures for agencies to determine the availability of funds for the payment of settlements and judgments against the Commonwealth are described in 815 CMR 5.00, as are reporting requirements. The regulation requires agencies to prepare and submit a report to CTR’s general counsel before making the payment. When reporting employee settlement agreements to CTR, state agencies use a Non-Tort Settlement/Judgment Payment Authorization Form (referred to in this report as the SJ Authorization Form) to document the following:

• whether the claim will be paid by the agency or through the Settlement and Judgment Reserve Fund;
• the type of claim;
• the agency’s information;
• the employee’s information;
• the type and amount of damages detailed in the settlement agreement;
• the amount of any attorney’s fees awarded; and
• the amount of any interest awarded or accrued.

Additionally, agencies must also include a copy of the employee settlement agreement signed by authorized representatives of both parties when they submit the SJ Authorization Form. 

1.    For an inmate to be in the auditee’s custody means that the auditee has the authorization from a court to incarcerate that inmate until the court orders their release.

2.    A mittimus is a written, court-issued document presented to a correctional facility, committing an individual to incarceration. It contains information on the offense and term of imprisonment and follows an inmate throughout their time in the criminal justice system.

3.    In an email dated September 16, 2025, FCSO defined a Criminal Offender Record Information petitioner in this instance as “an individual who has access to the [decedents’ Criminal Offender Record Information] as identified in the [victim notification registry].”

4.    In an email dated July 16, 2025, FCSO defined a mental health watch review as contact with an inmate who has been placed on a mental health watch to determine whether the watch should continue or end.

5.    In an email dated July 3, 2025, FCSO defined a QHP as “a Medical provider with the credentials and authorization to perform a needed task. A QHP will be different depending on what task is being examined or performed and could include Medical Doctors, Dentists, Doctors of Psychology, Psychiatrists, Nurse Practitioners/Physicians Assistants, Registered Nurses, and Licensed Practical Nurses.”

6.    In an email dated July 3, 2025, FCSO defined a qualified mental health professional as “a mental health provider with the credentials and authorization to perform a needed task. Generally, at the FCSO, qualified mental health professionals will include Doctors of Psychology, and Psychiatrists.”

Date published:	November 25, 2025